


Blaze of Glory

by chibi_zoe



Category: Saiyuki Gaiden
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Arson, Detectives, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-02
Updated: 2014-04-02
Packaged: 2018-01-17 09:11:01
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,422
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1381927
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chibi_zoe/pseuds/chibi_zoe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A serial arsonist is on the loose and Arson Investigator Kenren has just been assigned to work closely with District Commander Goujun</p>
            </blockquote>





	Blaze of Glory

**Author's Note:**

> Fire and Rescue services work differently all around the world, for the purposes of this story, fire-fighters are government employees with a basic military-style rank structure.

The bright, flaring ignition of the match in the dark was pure poetry and he stared at the dancing sulphurous flame for a long moment, captivated, before lowering it down to gently kiss the carefully laid drizzle of kerosene on the dirty acrylic carpet. The tiny flame sputtered for a brief moment before embracing its fuel source, leaping forwards, and racing across dirty floor towards the open window and the enormous pile of newspapers stacked below it.

He breathed deeply as the distinctively scented smoke trailed past his face and smiled happily, pleased with his work. He’d been stalking the hoarder who dwelled in this filthy newspaper-filled house for months now, and he’d seen the woman make her nervous way down the street at exactly 2:17pm as she had every Tuesday for as long as he’d been watching her. She would be back at exactly 4:57pm with five newspapers, a bottle of milk, a loaf of bread and 13 apples. She never deviated from her carefully planned routines, but today when she returned, her disgusting house would be a nothing but smoking ruin, and the neighbourhood a better place for it. 

Regretfully tearing his eyes away from the hypnotically dancing flames, he checked his watch. He stepped carefully around a pile of uneaten, rotting, apples and made his way down the narrow hallway towards the back door. The head high piles of newspapers on both sides of the narrow walkway whispered to him as he passed by, begging to be set free. He smiled to himself as he carefully locked the back door and slipped out in the overgrown yard. There were a couple of broken fence palings that allowed him easy access into a narrow rear easement. He looked both ways for nosy neighbours before stepping casually through. 

He straightened his barely rumpled clothing, pulled on the jacket that he’d left sitting on the closed lid of the unused bin, and hoisted his bag over his shoulder, before making his way towards the street, where he slipped into place behind the straggling group of nicotine-addicted students making their way towards the railway station. If anyone noticed his sudden presence, they kept it to themselves, and he moved through the turnstile without incident. In the distance, he could hear the sounds of the sirens as the fire-engines hurtled towards his handiwork; he smiled as he turned his head to see if he could see them.

“I bet Dr Gensui’s gone and set fire to the science lab again.” One of the students said disparagingly and his friends laughed before they all turned back to the battle game they were playing on their phones. 

** -- ** -- **

Kenren scrambled out of bed, tumbling to the floor inelegantly as he neglected to untangle himself from the dastardly sheets first. Clawing his way up the bedside table, and accidentally knocking the unlit and surprisingly heavy lamp onto his head, he scrabbled for his obnoxiously loud phone. Typically, just as he picked it up it stopped ringing, and he cursed loudly into the artificial darkness. Slumping back down onto the floor, he briefly debated whether he should untangle himself or return the call first. 

Having just decided to extract himself from his treacherous bedding before doing anything else, it did not surprise Kenren in the slightest when his phone abruptly burst back out into the frenetic strains of Lady GaGa’s latest hit chorus. Sighing to himself, it was obviously going to be one of _those_ afternoons, he slapped the phone up to his ear. The next chord nearly deafened him, and he jerked his hand away from his head in irritation whilst jabbing at the answer button.

“Detective Kenren.” He rasped out. Clearly he should’ve had that glass of water that he’d been thinking about before going to bed, his throat felt like he’d been gargling sand.

“There’s been another one from The Ninja.” A disgustingly cheerful voice announced gleefully. Kenren groaned and sat up, leaning against the mattress to keep himself upright.

“Where?” 

“I’m sending the details through to you now. You’ll be working with closely Commander Goujun on this one, so you might want to get your ass moving.” Kenren groaned again, this time with more feeling, and hung up. His phone immediately beeped to advise him that the promised email had arrived already, but he ignored it in favour of clambering to his feet. 

Why Enrai had chosen this week to resign so suddenly he had no idea, but trying to pick up where the man had left off was wreaking havoc on Kenren’s life. As well as his own existing investigations, he had inherited over a dozen small cases and one enormous monstrosity, codename The Ninja, which had just gotten significantly worse. 

He threw the bedclothes back over the mattress and stumbled into the bathroom to slurp up a couple of messy handfuls of bracingly cool water before eyeballing himself in the mirror. He could get away with not shaving, and brushing his teeth would only destroy the taste of the bitter coffee that he desperately needed. Running the fingers of his hand through his hair in lieu of a comb, he declared himself fit and as ready for work as he was ever going to be. 

Swinging his coat over his shoulders, he stamped his still-socked feet back into boots that it seemed had barely cooled down since he’d kicked them off, checked that he still had his cigarettes, wallet, keys and phone in his coat pockets as well as his badge and evidence kit, and strode out the door ready for another wonderful evening.

He didn’t notice that he’d forgotten to put his shirt back on until he idly scratched his stomach whilst waiting for the attendant to finish pouring his coffee, and touched bare skin. Sighing at his own idiocy, he drew himself up to his full height, lifted his chin and pulled his shoulders back. If he went back for his shirt, or stopped to buy a new one, he would be even later than he was already destined to be, and Commander Goujun would definitely be _displeased_. Kenren hadn’t had nearly enough sleep in the last 24 hours to deal with such a situation, therefore ballsing it out was the only way to go. 

** -- ** -- **

“Don’t think that I’ll forget this Goujun!” With a soft click the phone went blessedly silent, and Goujun ran his hand through his hair in frustration. His sister-in-law was a complete menace; he didn’t know how his brother put up with her. No doubt she was already on the phone again complaining about his boorish behaviour, which he just knew he would hear about at length from various family members over the coming days.

Wondering what was keeping the Detective that Kanzeon had promised; Goujun closed the file with the sketchy details of this afternoon’s fire and added it to the horrifyingly large pile of files on the corner of his desk. Picking up his coffee cup and taking a sip, Goujun immediately spat his mouthful back into the cup, it was stone cold. Typically enough, it was just at this moment that his door burst open to reveal a tired-looking dark-haired man in a long black leather coat buttoned to the chin, who was holding a clearly steaming cup of strong-smelling coffee in red travel-mug. 

The man said nothing, just plopped himself down in Goujun’s intentionally uncomfortable visitors chair and pointed to the pile of files, before grabbing the one off the top.

“These The Ninja’s arsons files then?” 

“I take it that you’re Detective Kenren?” Goujun said, appalled at the man’s rudeness. 

“Yeah that’s me.” The man mumbled as he perused the topmost file, taking the photos out and holding them up at various angles. He had put his coffee cup down on the edge of the table, and Goujun watched the steam rise from it for a long moment.

“Took you long enough to get here.” He said as the other man picked his mug back up and took a small sip.

Kenren hummed thoughtfully and Goujun looked across the table at him, irritated. “Tell me what your impressions are,” the man said, finally looking up and meeting Goujun’s eyes “Commander.” 

Goujun grit his teeth and breathed through his nose as he collected his thoughts. 

“All of the incidences are the same, free standing houses in badly run-down condition, each occupied by a single person with a history of mental illness. There are never any signs of forced entry, hence his codename The Ninja, but in each case the first officer on the scene has reported signs of accelerant use. The fires are all started in the late afternoon, and no one ever sees any suspicious activity beforehand. Twelve of the sixteen reported fires have been dealt with by stations in my district and the other four have been within two blocks of my district boundary.” 

“So what you’re saying is that someone is targeting you?” Kenren asked with a lopsided smile and a quick glance up from the photos he was rifling through. The afternoon light streaming through the window highlighted the deep bags under the man’s eyes, but Goujun couldn’t find it in himself to feel sorry for the aggravating investigator.

“Not at all Detective Kenren,” Goujun said shortly, “I merely meant that the arsonist is targeting the Metro West area of Tenkai City.” Which should have been obvious really, he thought to himself.

“I’ve also been through the staff rosters for all of the stations,” here Goujun paused to push a thick blue manila folder across his desk, “and due to staff rotations there are no staff members who have been rostered off on the afternoons of all sixteen fires.” Kenren looked up at him with a thoughtful expression on his face, which was starting to look a little flushed. Goujun wondered idly why the man didn’t remove his coat if he was hot. 

“I haven’t had enough sleep to concentrate properly on all of these this afternoon,” Kenren said bluntly as he tapped the piles of files with his hand, “I think that it would be better if we head over to the scene right now. Whilst it’s still hot you might say.” The detective laughed at his own lame joke, and Goujun faked a brief smile – more a baring of the teeth than anything else – and grabbed his keys. This was going to be a long case.

** -- ** -- **

This was going to be a long case, Kenren thought as he followed District Commander Goujun down the wide corridor. The man was stiff, humourless and decidedly grumpy. The fact that Kenren himself was sleep deprived, sexually frustrated and boiling alive in his buttoned up coat probably wasn’t helping the situation, but he really wasn’t feeling in the mood to be generous. 

The underground carpark was blessedly cool and Kenren breathed a quiet sigh of relief as he followed the quickly striding Commander past the short line of cars to the vehicle at the end of row. It was no surprise to Kenren whatsoever that Goujun was driving the latest model Jeep, a top of the range model with every conceivable added extra, although the fact that it was a glossy white was enough to make him smile wryly.

The District Commander was the only albino that Kenren had ever met, and the first time that he’d laid eyes on the man he’d been almost unable to look away as his insatiable curiosity grabbed hold of him. Even when he’d been caught staring, he’d been captivated by the red eyed stare for several long minutes before realising how rude he was being. He’d still stared for at least a further minute before breaking their eye contact. He wondered idly how often the man met the same reaction.

The drive to the scene of the most recent fire was uncomfortably silent, with not even the radio to break the tension, and Kenren cursed the fact that he’d left his half-drunk coffee on Goujun’s desk along with the piles of files. He hoped dearly that the other man would be open to stopping somewhere on the way back for a little bit of liquid fuel. His stomach grumbled loudly in protest at being forgotten about, and he closed his eyes as he tried to remember the last time he’d eaten.

“We’re two blocks away.” Goujun said suddenly. He’d obviously worked with Enrai quite a bit if he knew enough about how the man worked to actually point out the distance to Kenren. 

“Hmm.” Kenren said vaguely, already looking out of the window. It was typical for this part of the western suburbs, rows of small and narrow bungalows, generally in bad repair, on tiny plots of land that were generally accessed by unlit rear lane-ways. The whole area was a study in low-socioeconomics, poor education and rising crime rates.

The street that the smoking ruin of the house sat on was generally more respectable than the surrounding streets. There were a higher proportion of freshly painted fences and the houses were all in reasonably good repair, albeit with more of their windows covered by security bars. The verges were all mowed, expect for the one in front of the burned out house, and there was minimal litter marring the gutters and footpaths. 

“This is it.” Goujun said unnecessarily as they pulled up between the sole remaining fire engine and a lone police car. A few of the fire-fighters were slowly picking their way through the still-smoking shell of the house, looking for embers which could possibly reignite, and several technicians were carefully moving around gathering evidence – mainly photographs, but a few samples of both burned and un-burned materials as well.

Kenren greeted the techs casually as he walked up to the former house, and was momentarily taken aback when they all stood to exchanged brief pleasantries with Goujun, who was surprisingly genial in response. Of course, they all probably met on a semi-regular basis and it was just Kenren who was out of his comfort zone and aggravating the situation. He reached up to wipe the slowly beading sweat from his temples, wishing dearly that he could take his coat off, and got to work. 

** -- ** -- **

He couldn’t help returning to the scene of his handiwork, although he waited an agonisingly prudent three days before doing so. It meant that that the burnt smell was greatly diminished and there was no heat emanating from the pile of rubble and ash, but there was still something so very satisfying in seeing the scorched remains of the once near-derelict house. 

Turning away and heading for the train station, he fished a cigarette out of his pocket and struck a match to light it. He let the match burn down half way, semi-captivated with the little dancing flame, before touching it to the end of his cigarette and breathing in. The first lungful sent tendrils of delight racing through his body, and he breathed out happily. He let the match burn down to his fingertips before shaking it to extinguish it and flicking it into the gutter. 

** -- ** -- **

Working with Kenren wasn’t quite as bad as it could’ve been. The man was intelligent and insightful when he was working, and his rudeness seemed to be more a dislike of social norms than deliberate needling. Goujun was horrified to find himself actually growing to like the other man. Enough that he’d actually agreed to meet for coffee before work this morning at an out-of-the-way boutique place that he’d never heard of before.

The small, brightly lit café was doing a roaring trade, the air heavily scented with the smell of freshly roasted coffee beans, and Goujun had to squeeze past a long queue of people waiting to place their order to get to the tiny table that Kenren was sitting at with two large mugs of coffee and a small plate of Danishes. A lot of people stared at him as he moved past them, but he was used to his looks garnering a lot of attention wherever he went. 

Albinos were rare enough, and Goujun’s own attempts as a teenager to be noticed for more than just a freak of his genetics were still evident. His ears were pierced all along the outer and inner rims and whilst he wore clear plastic studs in them for work, they were still quite obvious. The small scale-pattern tattoos on each outer cheek, done in a pale green ink that still leaped out of Goujun’s colourless skin, were also extremely obvious whenever his long white bangs swung back.

“Good morning.” Kenren said brightly when Goujun pulled out the chair to sit down. “Try an apple Danish, they’re particularly good this morning.” 

Goujun picked one up and took a small bite, then hummed in pleasure, it really was very good, the sweetness of the pastry working beautifully with the tartness of the apple. “They bake them all fresh on premises every morning.” Kenren said with a smile on his face as his long fingers reached out to grab himself a second small pastry.

“How’d you find this place?” Goujun asked curiously as he took a sip of his coffee. It was just the way he liked it, double-strength with a splash of milk and a touch of sugar, and he smiled across the table at Kenren in thanks.

“My son told me about it,” Kenren paused for a sip of his own coffee, “his parents brought him here and he enjoyed it so much that he begged me to bring him here one weekend when he was staying with me. I’ve been coming here pretty regularly ever since.” 

Goujun was curious. Kenren had a son, which wasn’t all that surprising given the rumours about his promiscuity, but the fact that the man had said ‘his parents’, not ‘his mother’, was very interesting.

“You have a son?” He asked instead as he took a second, much larger, bite of his breakfast. 

“His name’s Goku and he’ll be fourteen this year.” Kenren grinned across the table at him happily. “He’s driving Konzen and Tenpou to absolute distraction with his sudden growth spurt and onset of teenage hormones.” Kenren laughed as he said this, obviously pleased that his son was growing up and just as pleased that he wasn’t dealing with it on a day-to-day basis. “I have him the first weekend of every month.” 

“Konzen Douji?” Goujun asked, surprised. Konzen wasn’t a very common name, especially one with a son called Goku. 

“Yes, do you know him?” 

“Not well, but we’ve met on occasion, generally at political functions.” Kenren pulled a face at Goujun’s words.

“Konzen hates those things, but Tenpou always makes him go just in case anything interesting happens.” Goujun snorted into his coffee. Interesting? As if. The only interesting things at those events were the canapés. 

“I can understand where he’s coming from.” Goujun said with feeling as he polished off the last of the pastries.

** -- ** -- **

Sitting on the opposite side of Goujun’s desk, across from the man himself, Kenren was finding it hard to concentrate on his work. He’d hit another dead end in his investigation and the Commander was looking quite captivating as he concentrated on something in front of him. They’d been working together now for nearly two months and had been getting to know each other rather well. Pushing his chair back, he stood up.

“I’m going out for a smoke break; you want me to bring you back a coffee?” 

“No,” Goujun sat back in his chair and rolled his shoulders, “I think I’ll grab one now and join you outside. I could do with some fresh air and sunshine.” Kenren grinned down at him.

“Going to work on your tan?” Goujun pulled a face at him as he rose to his feet and grabbed both his sunglasses and his beige overcoat. It never ceased to amuse Kenren that all of Goujun’s clothes were in shades of white or cream, with only the occasional pastel to add a touch of colour. Such pale wardrobe choices seemed to be at odds with Goujun’s chosen career, where ash and mud were daily facts of life, but they did make him stand out in a crowd.

“You want a coffee too?” Goujun asked as he slipped out the door.

“I’d love one.” Kenren replied as he checked his pockets to ensure he had his lighter. “I’ll bring it out.” Goujun told him as he disappeared into the station kitchen.

The station crew were fastidiously checking all of the hoses as Kenren headed out into the little sunlit courtyard at the rear of the building. He’d been slowly getting to know them, and made a point of training with them for a couple of hours twice a week, just to prove that he wasn’t merely a paper-pusher on loan from the police department.

He’d lit up and taken a couple of long drags before Goujun stepped out bearing two mugs of steaming coffee. Kenren immediately stepped forward to grab his mug so that the other man could slip his sunglasses down over his eyes.

“Thanks.” He said as he took a quick sip.

“So, what are you doing this weekend?” Kenren asked, flicking the ash off the end of his cigarette.

“Nothing much,” Goujun replied, glancing across at him, “why do you ask?” Kenren couldn’t decide if Goujun sounded hopeful or if it was just his imagination.

“Well it’s just that I’ve got Goku this weekend,” Kenren began, “and I’m taking him and his friend Nataku to the ‘Jade Emperor’ theme park and I wanted to know if you like to join us?” He tried to keep his voice casual as he asked, not wanting to put any obligation on the other man. Goujun shot him a surprised look, and then took a long sip of his coffee. Kenren’s heart sank and he took a deep drag on his smoke to cover his disappointment.

“I think I’d enjoy that,” Goujun started and Kenren’s heart leapt “would you like me to head over to your place or meet you there?”

“How about you meet us there at nine?” Kenren would have liked to suggest that Goujun meet them as his place, that way he could suggest that the other man come in for dinner after they returned home, but Goku could be quite a handful at the best of times and hyped up on sugar and adrenaline he might be a bit much for the staid and steady Commander.

“Sounds good.” Goujun smiled at him before finishing the last of his coffee and turning to head back inside. 

Then the station bell went off and the radio operator’s voice rang out, “We’ve got a bad one guys, a gas cylinder has exploded over at Princes Paints and chemical store’s going up.”

** -- ** -- **

Goujun braced his feet and held onto the hose nozzle, trying to direct its flow to the most appropriate areas. Directly behind him, Kenren was also braced and holding the hose steady so that it didn’t snake its way out of Goujun’s grip. The smoke was thick and choking and the noise was incredible as cans of spray paint exploded everywhere.

The radio waves were alive with comments and observations from the fire-fighters, as well as directions and orders, and Goujun’s mind buzzed with all of the details. He barked out instructions, trying to keep everyone safe whilst still extinguishing the blazing inferno as quickly as possible. He was positive that this wasn’t the work of The Ninja, but that didn’t mean that it wasn’t arson anyway.

“Kenren, forward two steps with me.” He said, waiting for an acknowledgment before moving. Kenren was an experienced fire-fighter, which Goujun had known but not ever witnessed, and working with him was as easy as falling off a log. They stepped forward in sync and Goujun redirected the stream of foam through an open window. 

The flames shooting skyward through the roof above the window flickered and died, and Goujun grinned at Kenren’s whoop of victory. They moved forward another two slow steps, redirecting the flowing stream yet again, determined to smother the hungry flames before they devoured the whole building.

Two hours later, Goujun and Kenren sat in the gutter, their backs to the greatly diminished but still roaring fire, drinking water and trying to catch their breaths. They only had a short reprieve before Goujun’s presence was required. He patted Kenren’s shoulder companionably as he stood up.

It was another four hours before the fire was completely extinguished. Goujun’s muscles screamed at him, his throat was raw and his eyes were stinging viciously. He wanted nothing more than to go home and collapse into bed, but he couldn’t yet, there was still more work to be done.

Kenren was going around to each individual fire-fighter gathering their statements about the blaze as they packed their gear away. He looked odd in the standard fire-fighting gear, identical to all of the other fire-fighters, but with a small Dictaphone held in one grubby hand. Obviously feeling Goujun’s gaze on him, he looked up and smiled, his teeth shockingly white in his ash-darkened face. Goujun unconsciously smiled back, before turning back to his duties.

After a final, interminable hour, they were finally on their way back to the station. Goujun was in the front, squeezed between the driver and Kenren, and he was really looking forward to a long, hot shower when they got back. In the meantime, he and Kenren compared notes, whilst the rest of the crew were bantered amongst themselves. The night crew was waiting for them when they arrived back, and started the clean up so that they could all strip off their heavy fire-fighting gear and troop to the showers.

The hot water was wonderful on Goujun’s back and he sighed happily as it sluiced over him. In the stall beside him, he could hear Kenren’s matching sigh of relief, and smiled to himself as he remembered the other man saying that his shower at home had very little water pressure. 

“Enjoying yourself?” He asked, soaping himself up and trying to ignore the persistent image of a sudsy Kenren that kept invading his imagination.

“Oh yeah.” Kenren breathed back and the man in the stall on Kenren’s other side laughed just as much as Goujun and teased him about his excessive love of plumbing.

** -- ** -- **

Kenren had been unable to get the image of Goujun’s naked back out of his head all week. The man had an enormous red tattoo of a flying dragon covering him from his nape to the crack of his ass. Not reaching out to touch it had been one of the hardest things that Kenren had ever done, and now whenever he saw the other man, the urge to touch it just got stronger. 

“Kenny?” He looked down at his son, who it seemed was growing taller every time Kenren saw him. “What’re you thinking about?” 

“Nothing Goku,” he smiled “just looking forward to today.” Predicably enough, just mentioning the theme park was enough to send the excitable boy into gyrations of joy. His friend Nataku, who was several years older if no taller, sat quietly beside him and watched his antics fondly.

“Kenny?” Goku started again “What kind of car does your boyfriend drive?” Kenren nearly swallowed his tongue at the boy’s words.

“He’s not my boyfriend Goku,” his son stuck his tongue out at him “and he drives a white Jeep.” 

“Is that him? The old man with the white hair?” Goku was pointing out of the window towards a familiar figure standing beside his car at the end of a parking row.

“Yes that’s him, but he’s not old, he just has white hair.” Kenren said as he parked as close to Goujun’s Jeep as he could – four double rows of cars away.

“Thank you.” Nataku said to him politely as the boy exited the car and Kenren smiled down at him. “No problem kiddo.”

“Goujun!” Kenren shouted as he waved to attract the other man’s attention as they moved towards him.

“Kenren.” Goujun nodded at him when he came within earshot. “You must be Goku,” Goku grinned up at him “and Nataku, it’s been awhile.” Kenren started, he hadn’t imagined that Goujun might know Nataku.

“Commander.” Nataku said politely, shaking Goujun’s proffered hand. Goku immediately started pestering Nataku to tell him where he knew Goujun from and why he called him ‘Commander’. Kenren whilst admittedly curious himself left them to it and chatted quietly with Goujun as they made their way to the entrance and queued to get in.

All in all it was a fabulous day, and Kenren had an absolute blast. Outside of work, Goujun was a lot more relaxed, and he was great around the kids as well, happy to indulge in their enthusiasm and egg them on when they started to flag. He went on all of the rides with them, generally sitting so close to Kenren that their shoulders brushed, and blaming it on the small size of the seats. Having seen the size of some of the other tourists visiting the park, Kenren knew that it was all just an easy excuse, but kept quiet in the hope that it would continue.

“Thank you Kenren, I had a wonderful time.” Goujun said to him as they loitered beside the Jeep in the carpark, the scent of roses filling the evening air. 

“Thanks for coming and saving me from dealing with these little monsters all by myself.” Kenren said with a grin, clapping a drooping Goku and Nataku on their shoulders and starting to steer them towards their car. “I’ll see you at work on Monday.”

** -- ** -- **

The dancing flame no longer captivated him in quite the same way. He wanted to share the experience with someone else, to make it magical again. 

** -- ** -- **

There hadn’t been any fires that could be attributed to The Ninja in four months, the longest gap between fires to date, and Kenren was wondering what had happened. He’d been ringing the other districts in the city and districts in other cities trying to find out if his perp had done something as simple as move house. But so far he hadn’t had any luck. He’d also been moving around amongst the other stations in the district as his presence was required, and he’d barely seen Goujun at all.

“Goujun.” The familiar voice was gruff as he answered his phone on the second ring.

“Hi, it’s Kenren,” Kenren said unnecessarily “I was wondering if you’d like to have dinner with me at my place this Friday night?” There was a pause on the other end of the line that had Kenren’s heart hammering like mad.

“I’ve got a meeting with the other District Commanders on Friday,” Kenren’s heart sank “but I should be free by seven. If that’s not too late for you, I could come over then.” Kenren grinned into the empty room 

“Sounds great!” He said happily, “I’ll see you then.” 

The week seemed to pass so incredibly slowly, and by the time Friday afternoon rolled around, Kenren was a mass of tension and nerves. He’d planned and discarded at least fifteen different menu ideas before settling on something simple that he couldn’t possibly screw up. Now he just had to wait for his guest to arrive.

“Sorry I’m late.” Goujun started when Kenren answered the doorbell at around a quarter to eight, presenting a bottle of wine as a sacrificial victim.

“Don’t worry about it.” Kenren smiled as he read the label on the bottle, Goujun had good taste in wines. “Come on in and sit down.”

Dinner was a great success after a slightly awkward start to the conversation, but things got smoother after a glass or two of wine. A third glass each and they retired to the lounge room, sitting side by side on the couch as Kenren popped a DVD on to watch. He could feel Goujun’s warmth all along the length of his body, from his knee to this shoulder, and he unconsciously leant into the sensation.

By the end of the movie, Goujun was pressed fully against him and his hand was resting gently on Kenren’s thigh. His own arm was around Goujun’s shoulders and the smell of the man’s peach shampoo was filling his nostrils. 

Taking hold of his courage, Kenren slowly leant in and brushed his lips against Goujun’s cheek. The man started slightly, startled, but then he turned his head and brushed his lips directly against Kenren’s. The kiss was chaste and they both drew back for a moment, before Kenren moved forwards again and Goujun moved to meet him. Their tongues tangled as they each learned the taste of the other and Kenren moaned at the impossibly wonderful sensation of Goujun’s hand sliding up his leg.

Raising his hand to cup Goujun’s cheek, Kenren shifted slightly to give himself a better angle, then slowly moved his hand down over the other man’s chest, revelling in the feeling of hard muscle under soft fabric.

The hand on his leg slowly moved into his lap, cupping him and starting to rub gently. He broke of the kiss to moan against Goujun’s mouth, and the man laughed softly before tightening his grip. In retaliation, he lowered his own hand to grasp Goujun in a matching grip. He mirrored the man’s every move, gasping and groaning against his mouth as he did so.

It wasn’t long before they were panting against each other and rocking their hips to increase the friction. Suddenly Goujun stiffened and shuddered, and the mere thought of the other man cumming in his pants was enough to send Kenren tumbling over the edge himself. 

Moving his hand up to cup Goujun’s cheek, Kenren kissed him gently on the lips and suggested that he spend the night, chastely of course, rather than attempt to drive home in his current condition. He didn’t have words for the wonderful feeling that coursed through him at Goujun’s quiet acquiescence. 

** -- ** -- **

“I really shouldn’t.” Goku said as Nataku handed him a cigarette, “I’ll get in trouble.”

“What’s the matter Goku? Both Tenpou and Kenren smoke, so why should they care if you do too?” 

“Konzen says that it’s a horrible habit and that if I take it up he’ll kill me himself rather than wait for them to kill me.” Goku said, but he allowed Nataku to guide the cigarette up between his lips and hold a light up to it. He breathed in and immediately started coughing violently.

Opposite him, Nataku sat quietly, drawing deeply and exhaling slowly. “I would have thought that with as much smoke as you’ve been exposed to that you wouldn’t cough so much.”

“Yeah well, being around smokers isn’t the same as deliberately filling you lungs with it.” Goku took another hit and tried to smother the coughing fit that was threatening to rise up and escape through his throat. 

“I love the way that the cherry lights up whenever you draw breath.” Nataku said quietly, watching the end of the smoke in Goku’s mouth as it glowed briefly.

“I’ve never noticed.” Goku said blithely as he blew a stream of smoke out of his nose, screwing up his face as the smell invaded his sinuses.

“I could show you.” Nataku whispered so quietly that Goku nearly missed it.

** -- ** -- **

Goujun stretched languidly. Kenren mumbled sleepily beside him and rolled over. Laughing softly to himself, he got up and headed to the kitchen to start the coffee machine. Their burgeoning relationship was going well, and they’d graduated from kissing and touching to hand jobs and then last night to blow jobs. If he closed his eyes, he could still picture Kenren on his knees looking up at him around his mouthful. 

The memory stirred his blood and he idly rubbed the front of his pyjama pants as he swelled in excitement. He was just considering whether to head to the bathroom to deal with it himself or if he should head back to bed and suggest that Kenren help him out, when bare arms wrapped around his naked chest and a warm body plastered itself against his back. He could feel Kenren’s obvious excitement pressing against him.

“Hey, don’t start without me.” The other man whispered in his ear, before kissing down his neck to nibble at his nape. Goujun dipped his head forwards to give the other man more room and sighed deeply as a wandering hand slowly slid down to his hip, and then around to dip inside his pants and gently fondle him.

“I wouldn’t dream of it.” He whispered back, pressing back into the embrace and wriggling his ass against the hardness lodged between his cheeks. “Take me back to bed and ravish me.” He said softly as the coffee machine gurgled and spat in the background, filling the air with a heavenly scent. He clearly felt Kenren’s erection twitch in excitement at his words.

“You sure?” It was sweet of Kenren to ask, but really he wouldn’t have said anything if he wasn’t sure about it. “Definitely” he said as Kenren reached around to claim his lips in a deep kiss.

They stumbled down the hallway to the unmade bed, falling into it giggling madly in anticipation as they scrambled to push their pyjama pants off. Kenren’s preparations were slow and thorough and Goujun was a writhing mass of desperate eagerness before finally a condom covered cock nudged at his most private place and slowly pushed its way into his body. 

There was the expected burn at first, but it quickly morphed in pleasure and he moved to lock his ankles around Kenren’s waist. The motion caused the other man to slide more deeply into his body and they both moaned at the sensation. He moved his hips in a pumping motion to let his lover know that it was ok to thrust, and groaned aloud as Kenren took him up on his wordless offer.

The sweat built up between them, slicking their skin and making them slide more easily against each other as Kenren thrust forcefully into his willing body. His fingers were clamped tightly onto Kenren’s shoulder blades as the man hovered above him, his hips working busily. The motion of Kenren’s stomach across his own aching erection was pushing him closer and closer to the edge of bliss, and then with a particularly hard thrust, Kenren sent him tumbling blissfully over the edge.

He was so caught up in his own pleasure that he missed seeing the other man’s face as his own ecstasy hit him, but he definitely felt the way that Kenren’s hips stuttered against his and heard the incredible sound that the tore its way out of his throat as he peaked, and then collapsed on top of him panting breathlessly.

“I love you.” Kenren suddenly blurted in the satisfied silence, and Goujun looked up at him in shock. He wondered if it was just the sex that had made Kenren say that or if he’d really meant it.

** -- ** -- **

“Dad?” Goku said looking up at Konzen with an odd expression on his face.

“Yes Goku, what is it?” Konzen asked glancing up from the pot that he was stirring; the stew was coming along nicely.

“You know that ninja person that Kenren’s been chasing?” 

“The Ninja?” At that, Konzen stopped stirring and focused his attention on his son. Goku was shifting from foot to foot nervously. “It’s Nataku.” Konzen frowned and took a step forwards. “He told me how much he loves fire, and he knows everything about all of the fires, and he knows how to pick locks, he showed me.” Konzen moved forward to embrace the boy comfortingly.

“Goku, just because he knows all of the details doesn’t mean that it’s him does it? He might just be really interested in the fires.” But that didn’t mean that Konzen wouldn’t pass the information along to Kenren at the first opportunity. 

“You think so?” Goku asked, desperate for a happy answer that meant that his friend wasn’t a criminal.

“Yes I do.” Konzen said, patting Goku on the back. “Now set the table for me, dinner’s nearly done.”

** -- ** -- **

He couldn’t do it anymore, he just couldn’t. He couldn’t keep lighting the fires for his father to fight and gain glory. Goku had rejected him, and there was no longer any reason to keep living. Nataku slowly typed his confession, checked it twice for spelling and grammar errors, then emailed it to Commander Goujun, who’d always been nice to him, then picked up the gun that he’d stolen from one of the houses that he’d burnt to the ground on his father’s orders, put it up to his temple and pulled the trigger.

** -- ** -- **

Goujun read the email and felt cold shivers run up and down his spine. If he read this correctly Li Touten had been forcing Nataku to be The Ninja in order to gain personal credit fighting to put them out. He picked up the phone and rang the police chief, forwarding the email as he did so. In no time at all an officer would be headed over to Nataku’s house, Goujun only hoped that it wouldn’t be too late.

He called Kenren as he soon as he could, to prepare him for what could be a horrible shock. When the bad news came in, he joined Kenren at Konzen and Tenpou’s house comforting Goku, and each other. The death of a child was always heartrending, especially a child that you knew, a child that you had seen grow up. 

** -- ** -- **

Li Touten snarled as the police dragged him away in handcuffs, he refused to go quietly. His useless son had failed miserably in his mission. It was a good thing that the boy had blown his own brains out or Li Touten would have been forced to do it himself. What good was a child who couldn’t even carry out simple orders?

** -- ** -- **

Kenren looked up as Goku burst through his front door, Konzen and Tenpou on his heels. In the kitchen Goujun was looking startled at the sudden influx of people and scrambling to find a shirt.

“Kenny guess what!” Goku shouted, dancing around the dining table “I’ve won a scholarship to Chang An Academy!” Kenren stood stock still in shock for a moment before whooping and catching his son up in bear hug. “Congratulations!” he said, kissing the young man on top of his head.

“It means that we have to move to Tougenkyou though. You have to come with us.” Goku begged, looking up at him with pleading eyes.

“Of course I’m coming with you, as long as I can stay with you until I find somewhere of my own to live.” Kenren said, looking up at a relieved Konzen and Tenpou. When his gaze moved to Goujun however, he was met with a stricken expression and his stomach sank. His lover obviously didn’t want to move, and he had blurted out his heart before thinking to discuss anything with the man that he purportedly loved. He’d really put his foot in it this time.

He tried to discuss things with Goujun, but every time he tried, he was given a cold shoulder. He resigned himself to being single when he moved and tried to mend his broken heart. Seeing Konzen and Tenpou who were still so much in love hurt more than it ever had before. 

** -- ** -- **

Goujun slung his bag over his shoulder and slowly walked down the unfamiliar street. Konzen had said that it was number five, but nothing else and he wasn’t sure what to expect. 

The house was small and kind of ugly, set back from the street with a semi-wild garden growing around it. It looked very snug and private. Opening the creaking gate, we walked up the curving path to the front door and took a deep breath. He rang the bell and waited as the sound of someone walking came closer. The door opened, and there he was. Kenren. Just as tall and dark and handsome as ever.

Goujun dropped his bag to his feet and embraced the stunned man in the doorway.

“Goujun?” He blurted out. “You came!” He did his best to squeeze all of Goujun’s breath out of his lungs.

“Of course I did Kenren, I love you, how could I stay away?”


End file.
